The adventures of me and my rabbit sponge

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Oman is an interesting country. It benefited from the same oil wealth as the UAE, but the effects are much more subdued. Sometimes when I’m out an about in Abu Dhabi, the green and the uber modern towers makes it difficult to remember that I’m living in the desert, the dusty sky the only reminder. The desert was evident everywhere in Muscat, in the dry climate fauna, the mountainous terrain running along the sides of the roads. When I get the chance, I’d love to explore the less developed areas more.

I didn’t want to take too many taxi trips while I was in Muscat, since it was pretty expensive and the taxis don’t have meters. You have to negotiate with the driver every time you want to go somewhere, which means a lot of chances to get ripped off. At the airport you don’t really have a choice, but they have a stand in which all taxi fares are prepaid at a stand before you get on a taxi. Anyways, this is how I ended up using the Big Bus Tour.

I wasn’t super impressed with it, since I tried to order the tickets online to save 15%, but for some reason they weren’t able to issue me a ticket and had to cancel my order. Still, it was $50 for unlimited travel on their route for the day, and it ended up saving me some money getting back to the airport because I got off at a stop closer to the airport. Also, there was NO ONE on the buses! There might have been a time or two when there was two other people on the bus, but that was it. Mostly I had the bus all to myself.

The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque had closed for tourists by the time I left the airport, but I still managed to get a shot of it. Opening for non-musims are 8am-11am excluding Fridays. Ladies, cover up that hair (and everywhere else for that matter) and men should wear long sleeves and pants.

The Mutrah Souk is pretty much the same as all the other Middle Eastern souqs I’ve been to, minus all the people. All the shopkeepers were pretty desperate to sell, but I already have enough scarves and trinkets.

This fort was right above the souk. You can see this kind of fort dotting the mountainous ranges all around Muscat.

The Muscat Royal Opera House was quite impressive, and hints at the money that oil has brought in. Wonder what the inside looks like?

There was a stop at the financial district of Muscat, and I thought I might get a bite to eat here. I got off and this was what I saw. Wandered around (it was 110 degrees!) looking for food and didn’t find much of anything at all.

At least I found this clock tower that was supposed to be one of the sights to see in Muscat. Not really impressed. Would not recommend stopping off here.

Green in the desert! And not the carefully cultivated kind of the UAE either.

I joined a tour (provided by Big Bus) of the Sultan’s palace and its surroundings. The tour guide was a local Omani who lived nearby, and basically we walked around while he gave me an overview of Omani history and architecture, although he was much more interested in asking me questions about the United States then he was in the history of the Sultan’s palace and the surrounding forts. It was really really hot by then, and I was seeing spots at the end of the tour.

I’m really starting to see the headscarf as a necessity. Halfway through our tour, both me and my guide had donned headscarves (he’s a man) to protect our heads against the searing heat.

Dates are often found in the Middle Eastern diet. These ones are kimri, or unripe, and I’m told that it tastes disgusting.

I had a blast at the Color Run in Abu Dhabi today, so I wanted to share the fun!

What is the Color Run about? It’s all about having fun with friends and family, while giving back to the community. There’s an entry fee ($38 for the one I went to) and $1 for every person entered is donated to a local charity. You get a race pack including a Color Run T-shirt, headband, and tattoo included with the price. The point of the Color Run is to have fun and get colorful. You don’t have to run if you don’t want to, which is great for me, because I HATE running.

Before pictures! Look how clean and white our shirts are…

The Color Run in Abu Dhabi was held at the Yas Marina Circuit, also used for the F1. When it’s not being used for racing events, it’s also open to runners on Tuesdays.

Loved her wig!

About 7000 people showed up for the color run, so we had to be let out in groups of 1000. Some people went all out and dressed up. I can’t tell you how many big hairy guys I saw in tutus…

What’s cooler than a camera drone?!

Below is a progression of pictures as I get more and more colorful, thanks to the very helpful people at the various color stations we encountered every 15-20 minutes. People were going crazy, throwing fistful of the colorful (and harmless) powders at everyone around them. Bit of advice, if you’re going to do this run, ziploc your camera, or it’s gonna end up with colored powder in it.

Had so much fun throwing powder at Tim’s face! It looked so cool that people actually stopped to tell him how much they liked his face. He did a pretty good job getting me too. I only wish I could look like that every day; would save so much time on makeup!

Finish Festival!

The Finish Festival at the end was pretty cool too. We got free t-shirts (after we liked them on Facebook) and a souvenir picture to commemorate our colorfulness. An Emirati reporter wearing an obviously expensive and completely white dishdasha stopped by to interview some runners and it was hilarious watching his discomfort as he watched a crowd of super colorful people passed by. I’m sure everyone was thinking the same thing: let’s throw some at him!

Unfortunately we missed out on the color throwing part because we couldn’t find where to buy the color packets. Oh well…we can do that next time! I hear their next stop is Shanghai…

So I had to make a day trip to Bahrain, a tiny Middle Eastern country one-hour away from the UAE. It’s known as the Vegas of the Middle East (although much much more conservative), and many Saudis and expats living in conservative Muslim countries visit to get away from the restrictions of their own country.

Bahrain offers Visa on Arrival for Americans (and many other nationalites); all you have to do is pay 5 dinar at customs and you get a two week visa. Before I left for Bahrain, I was advised to fill in the entry form completely, or I’d have issues at customs. If it’s your first time visiting Bahrain with your valid passport, you’ll have to wait awhile while they do a check; I was assured that the next time I visited I’d go straight through.

Mandatory pre-travel airport selfie!

The Bahrain dinar is tied to the American dollar, at 1 dinar to 2.65 dollars. I’m much more used to money that’s smaller than the American dollar, and as a result, struggled with realizing that almost everything in Bahrain is expensive.

By the way, the Bahrain International Airport is really boring, with few shops and places to eat. If you happen to be heading to a gate downstairs, just know that you’re not getting back up.

Upon exiting customs was to get some cash at the ATM, as I was planning to take taxis and visit the souk. I had an inkling that this was a place where people spend big money when I was greeted with the options of withdrawing 50-500 dinars. Five hundred dinars is $1326! I felt very poor indeed when I picked “other amount” and withdrew 40 dinars.

Half Bahrain dinar bill, worth $1.33

First thing I noticed after leaving the airport was that the taxi drivers appeared to be local, which never happens in the UAE. All taxi drivers in the UAE are from neighboring countries like Pakistan, Sri Lanka and India; you almost never see the Emiratis working customer service. I assume Bahrain’s taxi drivers are local because it’s good money; it was about $30 to travel from the airport to the city center, and it was a short trip. There’s a 1 BD charge for trips leaving and going to the airport, and they also charge you 1 BD for a “waiting taxi”; when I was leaving the mall to get back to the airport, all the available taxis were waiting in the parking lot rather than at the entrance of the mall in order to levy this extra fee. Sneaky!

Originally I’d planned to spend some time at the souk (Arabic for market), but I’d forgotten that many stores close for a few hours around noon. It’s like an afternoon siesta where the locals go take a nap and rest while the sun is at its hottest. So I wandered around for a bit, looking at the shop windows and wondering whether I should wait an hour for it to open.

I ended up leaving because I was getting stared at and men were whispering sexual innuendos as I passed. Traveling alone as a non-Muslim woman in the Middle East, it’s just something you have to get used to. A lot of men in the area equate not being covered from head to toe to as a sign that you’re loose, or worse, a prostitute. On the plus side, no one ever tries to touch me.

I decided to go to a nearby mall to grab some coffee and a bite to eat. I admired the architecture along the way; it’s so strange to think that all this is in the middle of a lot of sand.

Beautiful view of the coast.

I’ve always wondered how they keep things so green.

The Seef Mall is just like any other mall I’ve seen in the Middle East, with lots of coffee shops and kid-friendly facilities. What’s surprised me were the prices; something were very cheap ($1 vitamins) and some were outrageously expensive. I walked into a gourmet popsicle shop, and got a tiramisu pop dipped in chocolate (it’s as good as it sounds). I didn’t see any prices, but I thought, how expensive can a popsicle be? it was $6. SIX DOLLARS FOR A POPSICLE!

Starbucks is fancy here.

Ridiculously expensive popsicle shop. Have to say, it was gooooood. If it weren’t $6 apiece, I’d probably have 4.

I’m not sure who decided that giant animal cars for children are a great idea in the confined spaces of a mall. I almost got run over…twice!

Before I finish off this post, I have to recommend this awesome organic burger place, Elevation Burger. The beef patty was juicy and the fries were made from olive oil. Almost as good as Shake Shack but probably a lot healthier. On a side note, a Saudi Arabian family of about 10 people came in, and bought about $270 worth of burgers and fries. Just saying, I’ve never seen so much money spent on fast food!

Just looking at it makes me hungry…

That’s it for Bahrain! Next time I hope to see the Tree of Life and maybe the souk when it’s open. Let me know if you know any good places!

I frequently forget that I’m living in the Middle East. I’m surrounded by familiar brands and foods, with all the comforts of Western living. Of the 2.33 million people living in Abu Dhabi, only 475,000 are Emiratis; the rest are workers from all around Asia, and a large Western expat community.

It’s events like the Qasr al Hosn Festival that remind me of where I am. There aren’t many times where you can see so many locals together in one place; the Emiratis are really supportive of their culture. It’s also a rare opportunity to freely take pictures of the locals; usually you have to get express permission, especially of their women.

“Qasr al Hosn represents the foundation of the nation’s capital and symbolizes more than two and a half centuries of Emirati heritage and cultural development.”

A lot of the outdoor events here are held later in the afternoon and close way later than we’d be used to, to make sure that no one is getting cooked under the sun. The Qasr al Hosn Festival opens at 4pm and ends at 11pm; even the kids stay up late! One thing I didn’t understand was the 10 dhs ($2.70) entrance fee. It’s too little to cover any sort of expense such an extravagant affair, and they definitely weren’t looking to make any money.

The Qasr al Hosn area is closed off the rest of year, so although it was in a location I’m familiar with, I had no idea there was such a big fort there. There’s a guided tour every 10 minutes, but we decided to skip it as there were so many other things to see!

Qasr al Hosn Fort

The workshop and activities area was split into three sections, desert, oasis and marine. They actually created a mini desert in the middle of the city; in fact, there was so much sand I had to stop every minute or so to empty the sand from my shoes. In the desert section were a variety of indigenous animals. They really went out of their way to get visitors to interact with the animals.

Getting chummy with a camel!

The saluki, a common Emirati hunting dog.

The Emiratis love falcons, which is also the national bird of the UAE.

Baaaaaa!

Awwwwww…

I’m not sure what this bird is called, but my man called it a desert chicken”

Probably not an Arabian horse, but still a beauty.

The marine section featured a mini manmade marina and showcased traditional skills like shipbuilding, fishnet making and pearl diving…with some modern touches of course.

Only in the UAE can you find a manmade marina built just for a festival…

Pearl-diving was a major industry in Abu Dhabi before oil. After the Japanese started cultivating pearls, the pearl industry took a nosedive and never recovered. However, they’re now into the business of pearl cultivation in collaboration with (ironically) the Japanese. It takes two years for a pearl to form after inserting foreign tissue, and they have an 80% success rate.

Tools of the trade

Net worn around the neck while pearl diving

Mr. Hamada hard at work cutting tissue out from a donor oyster.

Transferring tissue with surgical precision to oysters that will be producing the pearl.

The festival offers workshops for adults and children, including traditional cooking, henna, making your own unique fragrance, making fishnets and more. You could literally spend all day there and still have things to do. It was also interesting to see the way things were done, and are still done in some of the emirates, before all that oil and money.

Women working on embroidery.

Man working on fishnets.

Emirati men dancing. I hear that on National Day, you could get randomly pulled into one of these dancing circles. Not if you’re a woman, of course.

Emirati soldiers.

Traditional market, or souk, selling local arts and crafts

Tim and an old school Land Rover. Someone important probably drove that car, because the license plate only has 3 numbers! These days, 3-digit licence plates can go for up to a million AED, or about $270,000!

Because we were too busy looking around, I only signed up for the henna workshop. Having done henna once before, I was interested in what goes into the process.

This is the henna tree. The leaves are laid out to dry in the sun before it can be used.

Next, you ground the leaves into smaller pieces.

Then you rub the leaves through a fine cloth stretched over a bowl, resulting in a fine, green powder that kind of looks like matcha. After mixing the powder with dry lemon rinds for that brown color, it creates a dark brownish green paste.

The paste is then applied to the skin. Traditionally it’s applied to the fingers and hands, and around the ankles for special occasions.

The paste takes about half an hour to dry. After it’s dry, you just rub it off with a tissue and then rinse with water. Because I didn’t hold my palm flat the entire time (it’s hard!) round part kind of smeared into the rays, so it ended up looking like a spider. It’s already starting to fade, so I assume it doesn’t last as long as the new henna formulas.

The henna I had done at the Central souk was from a tube, and was much darker in color. There are also black ones, but I’ve been told that it can burn skin and may contain carcinogens.

I really enjoyed the exhbition at the Festival, showcasing the oral history of Qasr al Hosn as well as the “Lest We Forget” project. This project brought together private photographs of people living in Abu Dhabi from 1958-1999. The pictures really brought home the fact that just 50 years ago, Abu Dhabi was no different than any other desert. The discovery of oil turned everything upside down and changed the lives of all Emiratis.

Lest we forget

I couldn’t resist taking a picture of this insanely cool baby!

We were also asked to take part in the project by taking a picture to put up on the wall of the exhibition. It was a little awkward because we weren’t allowed to do the usual poses like putting our arms around each other; remember, PDA is a big no-no!

Tim & Emily, Feb. 28, 2014

Last but not least, food! We only nibbled because we went after dinner; I admit, I was worried that they were going to make me eat things with my hands again.

This is called “khameeh”, a type of Emirati bread with honey. The bread was warm and the honey good.

Wish it was earlier so I could’ve had some qahwa!

Notice that the mineral water is only 2 AED ($0.54), even though this is one of those places where they could easily mark it up. Local water is 2 AED everywhere, even restaurants and movie theaters. We theorize this could be an actual law to prevent dehydration; this is, after all, the desert.

The Qasr al Hosn Festival ended today, but it’ll be back next year. This year we skipped the Cavalia horse show, and we didn’t get to see it during the day. I’m looking forward to doing more workshops next year and looking around that fort!

You know how if you live in a certain place, you never get around to seeing the famous sights in the area? I know people who have lived in Beijing for their entire lives and never went around to see the Great Wall, and Californians who decided they don’t need to go to Disneyland. The Grand Mosque is kind of like that for me. I visited it as a tourist and was so enthralled that I vowed I would come see it again once I moved here. Didn’t happen. So far it’s been almost a year, and I pass by all the time, all the time promising myself that next time I’ll go see it.

The Grand Mosque, also known as the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, was a vision of the late founder and of the UAE, and completed after his passing. Like most everything in the UAE, money was no object when it comes to making this beautiful piece of architecture; it cost 2 billion AED, or 545 million USD to build the Grand Mosque. Materials and designers were brought all over the world to help with the project.

The Grand Mosque under the hot desert sun.

The Grand Mosque at dusk.

Some people like to compare the Grand Mosque to the age-old ones in Turkey, and dismiss it for lacking history. I think the Grand Mosque is just as beautiful, with just as much care and reverence put into it as any of the older ones.

If you’re going to the Grand Mosque, don’t bother trying to cover every inch of your skin. If you’re a woman, they’re going to make you wear an abaya (traditional clothing for Emirati women) no matter what. For men, as long as you’re wearing long pants and shirts with sleeves, you don’t have to borrow a dish-dasha (traditional clothing for Emirati men). Ho strict is their dress code? Before you put on an abaya, they won’t even let you take a picture with the mosque.

Remember when Rihanna ruffled some feathers because she took some “provacative” pictures in the Grand Mosque?

I wasn’t thrilled about having to wear an article of clothing that dozens of people have worn before me, but I do love how slimming it is!

We were assigned an Emirati tour guide who spoke perfect English to show us around the Grand Mosque. He gave us a lot of interesting information about the symbolism and designs of the mosque, as well as about their religion. I learned that the call to prayer plays five times a day, at different times every day depending on when the sun sets. I’ve since gotten so used to it that I barely hear it anymore, but at the time I was woken up every morning at around 4am by the morning call. Even malls play it on their loudspeakers, and provide prayer rooms for shoppers to stop by. Don’t be surprised to find men and women washing their hands and feet in a public bathroom; they’re required to clean both before praying.

There are endless details that I could go on about, but my favorite are the domes. There are 82 domes in the mosque, each more intricate than the last.

One day, I’m going to go back and take a picture of each and every one of those domes…

The inside of the mosque is awe-inspiring. Big enough to accommodate 40,000 worshippers at once

Flowers are featured everyone inside and outside the mosque.

The carpet inside the Grand Mosque is the largest in the world, and took 1,200 weavers 21 months to make. You’d definitely understand why they insist you take your shoes off before walking on it!

The 98 names of Allah, one in each 5-petaled flower. If you look closely though, you’ll notice a blank one. The guide informed us that as humans we can’t possibly presume to know all the ways of Allah, and so one flower is left blank.

Another world record, the biggest chandelier in the world!

For everyone visiting the UAE, the Grand Mosque is definitely a must-see! Not only are the guided tours informative and interesting, it really gives you a glimpse into Emirati culture. Just going shopping at the various malls can’t give you that.

That’s it for the Grand Mosque! I’m going to the Qasr al Hosn Festival tomorrow, so hopefully I’ll have more to share soon!

Yup, I’m gonna do an entire post on a mall! And what a mall it is; the Dubai Mall is currently the biggest mall in the world, with 1200 shops and still expanding! It’s the mall to end all malls, selling everything from solid gold iPhones to sleepy stuffed camels to Japanese linens. Almost everytime I go to Dubai I end up here, much to my boyfriend’s chagrin.

As part of our Valentine’s Day celebrations, we made our way up to Dubai to have a good meal and do some shopping. Just a heads up, some of the pictures are from different trips, so don’t be surprised if I’m wearing different outfits (no, I’m not one of those people who bring different outfits for pictures).

Did I mention that the Dubai Mall is connected to the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world?

There’s no shortage of froufrou things at the Dubai Mall!

Always check out the cars parked in front…they’re a sight in themselves!

Before we get to eating and shopping though, some ground rules:

Keep your hands and lips to yourself!

A lot of people ignore the “respectful clothing” rule, and you’ll see short shorts and cleavage everywhere. Keep in mind that a lot of the locals to equate revealing clothing with whores (for women), so if you want to avoid uncomfortable comments and stares, it’s still best to keep to the conservative side.

ABSOLUTELY NO KISSING IALLOWED! Dubai is much more liberal than the rest of the emirates, but this is still an big no-no. As in you could be jailed for doing it. If you’re not married, refrain from holding hands, as a well-placed complaint could get you in trouble. Men should be careful to avoid physical contact with local women; simple gestures that we use to express friendliness could be interpreted very differently here.

We got to Dubai around 1pm, and we were famished. There are so many food options in the mall, ranging from the usual range of fast foods to five star restaurants. We settled on California Pizza Kitchen, as we had a great meal there in Hawaii.

It was very, very disappointing. The thing about eating out here is that familiar brands often end up very different than back home, and not in a good way. Nothing we ordered tasted good, never mind resembling the great dishes at the other CPK’s I’ve been to.

CPK Meat Craver pizza in North America. Not my picture, but I can attest that it does look like that.

CPK Meat Craver pizza in Dubai. Ugh.Just look at all that congealed cheese and burnt meatballs!

Thankfully our dinner was much better, as we picked an old favorite: Shake Shack. For those of you who know Shake Shack, it started out in New York and blew up there. They make the most amazing (and greasy) cheeseburgers, as well as amazing custards and milkshakes. If you ever come across one of these, definitely stop by!

Probably the fanciest Shake Shack in the world.

Red Velvet Custard…just looking at this picture makes me drool.

The Dubai Mall is also home to another New York cult favorite, Magnolia Bakery. I stopped going to the one at the Dubai Mall because one opened up in Abu Dhabi, but anyone’s who’s not had one should stop by Bloomingdale’s for a taste. The cupcakes are to die for, with fluffy sugary icing that’s somehow not too sweet, and the banana pudding is thick and creamy without being too rich. Some people say the one in New York is better, but I can’t see how!

Vanilla cupcake with vanilla icing. It really is a wonder I don’t weigh 500 pounds!

Another good place to eat is the Social House, which is a Western and Eastern cusine fusion. There’s a good variety of food and drinks (non-alcoholic of course), and a great view of the Dubai fountain, the largest in the world. The fountain turns on every half hour; it really is quite a spectacular show, much better than the one in Vegas.

The Hainanese chicken at the Social House is pretty close to the quality in China.

The Dubai Fountain is really something else.Be prepared to fight with all the tourists around you if you want to film it though!

The Burj Khalifa is right next to the Dubai Fountain, but it’s only accessible to tourists from the lower ground floor of the Dubai Mall. You should make an appointment to visit the Burj Khalifa well in advance of your trip, as it’s the difference between 125 AED ($34) and 400 AED ($109) for immediate entry (click here for more information). It’s worth it if you have a great camera and want to get some pictures of Dubai. I’m personally a sucker for panoramic city views, and I’m planning to go up there in April to check out the sunrise.

The tallest building in the world, and the best place to get a full view of Dubai!

If you have children, there’s also tons of things for them to do. The UAE is children-friendly in general, with a great focus on family and kids. The Dubai Mall has a huge indoor aquarium, one of the world’s largest suspended ones (yet another record broken), offering cage snorkeling, glass bottom boats, and other interactive activities.

I really need a better camera to capture the aquarium’s beauty. This picture doesn’t do it justice.

Right across from the aquarium is the Cheesecake Factory, and a huge candy store guaranteed to make any kid (and me) scream. Everything in the store is over the top: giant swirly lollipops, the world’s largest chocolate bar and wall to wall to wall of different colored m&ms.

Just looking at it will give you a sugar rush…

There’s the Asian eyes again…

The Waterfall is yet another extravagant water feature in the Dubai Mall, expanding all four floors of the mall and is known for it’s beauty. It was designed to be a meeting point for visitors, and has a variety of coffee shops surrounding it.

Now on to my favorite part, shopping! We visited the Dubai Mall at the end of the Spring Festival in China, and there were still many promotions and advertisements geared towards Chinese tourists. It’s a sign of how much their revenue depends on Chinese visitors, that every single store accepts UnionPay (the Chinese version of Visa and Mastercard), and all high-end brands have at least one sales assistant who speaks Chinese.

A sign that Chinese tourists are taking over the world…

If you’re looking for souvenirs to bring home, the Dubai Mall even has a souk, a traditional Arabic market. It’s definitely not the best place for deals and heavy bargaining, but it has everything you’ll find in a souk elsewhere.

The Souk

The Dubai Mall is also home to one of my favorite bookstores, Kinokuniya. I have a Kindle Paperwhite, but it doesn’t diminish my love for actual paper. It’s not that easy to find a good selection of books in the UAE, and Kinokuniya is one of the few bookstores that sell more books than stationary. Other than English books, they also have books in a variety of languages.

There are Kinokuniyas all over the world, but this is the biggest I’ve seen.

For all the fashionistas and beauty junkies out there, this place is heaven. There’s a shoe garden of stores devoted to shoes, a gigantic Sephora, hard to find brands from all over the world. If only I had the money…

The Shoe Garden…and a giant flower chair I found in the middle of it!

Not as big as the one in New York, but you’ll definitely find some products unique to the Middle East!

Repetto is pretty hard to find in the US. If only I had a spare $300 to spend on a pair of ballet flats…

You can find Laduree macaroons outside of France here in Dubai!

Souvenir from al Gallery…LMAO

That’s it for the Dubai Mall. I’ll post more on the Middle East soon, so keep coming back!

I’m Chinese, and before I went to China I thought that even though I don’t agree with everything they do, I’d at least understand why. Obviously, I was wrong. Below I’ll share with you 5 things that Chinese people do that completely baffle me.

1. Chinese people are extremely anxious about their children. In the winter, you’ll often see Chinese children wrapped up in so many layers that they look like large puffy balls (they’re convinced that the cold will make them sick). Loved pets are often abandoned for fear that they’ll pass on diseases to their children. Thrifty parents will not hesitate to buy the most expensive milk powder for their babies. And yet, you’ll often see mothers jaywalk across a busy intersection with their child in their arms. Does that make sense to you?

2. People in China will spend two month’s salary on a new cell phone, but argue with a vendor for an hour over 10 yuan. They’ll save for a luxury bag, and then ride the bus to work to save on transportation costs (trust me, the bus is not a pleasant way to commute during rush hour). When they go home for Spring Festival, they’ll blow a month’s salary treating their relatives and friends to a meal, then go home and eat instant noodles for a month. The Chinese call this “slapping the face to look fat” (打肿脸充胖子）. I always knew that face was important to them, but can it really mean that much?

3. They think that cheating is ok, even a smart thing to do. I was shocked when my students freely admitted that they cheated while in school, claiming it was “something that everyone does”. One explained to me that because everyone did it, you’d be at a disadvantage if you didn’t.

4. When I first started working in China as an English Teacher, I was uncomfortable with the “pretty” compliments. Coworkers would tell me that I will do well because I was “pretty” and the boss “likes” pretty girls. Students told me that I would be a great teacher because I was “pretty”. Sexual harassment was pretty much expected and accepted in the workplace; my boss would comment whenever any member of the female staff wore skirts.The boss often made very sexist comments towards the female staff, and pressured them to go out for lunch or dinner. Chinese friends were surprised that I would consider that kind of behavior sexual harassment, and thought it to be just how things worked. It’s pretty much accepted that a beautiful girl would have more opportunities in the workplace.

5. Women are expected to be “weak”, and they seem more than happy to fulfill that role. Despite the fact that a lot of women work, and some even command a higher salary then their men, women are still expected to be the weaker sex. If they earn more, they’re encouraged to keep it under wraps for the sake of the man’s ego. If they’re taller, they’re forbidden to wear heels to de-emphasize their height difference. Mind you, many of them take full advantage, taking time off because they have menstrual cramps (they realize this happens every month, right?), having male coworkers do work for them, and even going out to lunch with men so they can eat for free (splitting the bill isn’t common in China). I’m surprised both at the women for accepting this notion, and at the men for enabling it.

I’m sure I’ll think of more, so keep an eye out for updates! Also feel free to share anything you’ve noticed ^^